Packing to go and getting to Laos...

Back from Laos and now in a mad rush to say all the goodbyes and pack everything ready for shipping. The house is starting to resemble an indoor market with boxes and packing everywhere and the floor littered with various objects and items.

We're having a harsh de-clutter at the same time. So much junk that really isn't worth carting all the way back home. The daughter and the wife are the biggest collectors of junk. Personally I'm into minimalism and other than clothes have very little apart from books, techie gadgets and DVDs. As fast as I fill bags with unused toys and clothes for the local orphanage the daughter empties them, insisting that this little plastic toy that doesn't work is really something that she "needs". How is it that 3 year olds don't actually want or prefer things, they need them.

Having looked into the options for getting to Laos from Bangkok we opted for overnight train. Cheaper than air, more interesting, and environmentally streets ahead of any airline option it was a good choice. 1st class sleeper to Nong Khai was 1,200 baht per adult, kids go free. For that we had our own air-con compartment with two beds, a sink and a small amount of space. Breakfast and dinner can be ordered in advance and delivered at a pre-arranged time, though I wouldn't recommend the food on the train unless you're really desperate.

Vientiane isn't much to look at. Basic, dusty and geared up for the cross border traffic and trade that is clearly a big part of local life. The most disticntive things about Nong Khai was the tuk-tuks, the distinctive Laos tuk-tuk with the driver perched high up on the front half of a motorbike. They don't have the speed of the Bangkok tuk-tuk and certainly didn't feel anywhere near as safe, which is worrying.

1st class compartment

Nong Khai

We crossed the 2km friendship bridge in a rickety old bus, crammed against what felt like half the population of Thailand. Checking in to Laos was frustrating. The queues at immigration were long and painfully slow moving and the guys processing the visa on arrival decided to down tools for a lunch break just as we arrived. But then we made it into the former Land of a Million Elephants (Lan Xang), as it was prior to being renamed Laos.

The taxi ride into town was interesting. The driver was really friendly, like pretty much all Laotians we met, and happily chatted to us about Vientiane and handed some good advice about what to see and prices for various things. The taxi was reminiscent of one I went in in Rangoon: Japanese, right hand drive in a left hand drive country, and held together by rust and dirt.

Train: 1,200 baht per adult
Visa on arrival for UK passport: US$35
Entrance fee: 10 baht
Taxi to downtown Vientiane: 300 baht

More about Laos to come.

Packing to go and getting to Laos...

Back from Laos and still no YouTube...

Back from Laos and head still rocking from the train journey. I know the train to the north is hellishly long compared to air travel but if you can get the first class sleeper (there aren't many) I personally think it's better than flying. Cheaper, more environmentally friendly and more enjoyable than squeezing into a tiny seat on a plane.

Will post more and some pics when I get my head together and sort myself out.

I see the great YouTube debate is still raging. Having been out of the country and had chance to access the controversial YouTube I checked out the clips that are causing such a stir. One is just silly and not in the slightest bit offensive and the other one is clearly someone angry and making a point by being insulting. I can see why the more sensitive Thais would be offended by the latter but not the former, it's just someone making a point. Having a quick browse through the comments I noticed that most of the comments I saw were in fact in support of the video posters and against Thailand and its lack of freedom, contrary to what has been said here in Thailand.

As many have already said, if they hadn't caused such a fuss the original videos would have simply vanished without a trace and no one would have need to bother about it. The Thai government seems to have done a great job of advertising those videos and encouraged more. Thailand seems to forget that in other parts of the world people are free to mock and criticize at will and when that freedom is checked they will do it all the more. Respect can quickly turn to derision.

More later.

Back from Laos and still no YouTube...

YouTube gone....

It's official, YouTube is banned in Thailand and it's caused quite a stir.

According to the BBC:

the site was banned after a 44-second film showing graffiti over the king's face was aired.

King Bhumibol Adulyadej, 79, is revered and it is forbidden to insult him.

The minister said a ban came after the Thai government asked YouTube's owner Google to remove it and they declined.

The contentious film also shows feet being placed over the king's face - an offensive act to Thais, who consider feet dirty.

Anyone who knows anything about Thailand will be aware of how seriously something like this will be taken here but to ban the whole YouTube site seems a tad excessive. Opinion is mixed. Matt makes a good argument against the banning here, some others are in favour of the banning including newbie Andrew here.

I fully appreciate why the authorities are offended by such a posting and I'm sure within a few days there will be protests outside the US embassy demanding that YouTube capitulates. However, how can this level of censorship ever be justified in a country that claims democratic status and is proud of its freedom of speech?

The internet is a wonderful thing but with all the good that comes from the internet there's a negative side. People from around the world can anonymously express their opinions to a potential audience of hundreds of millions, as should be their right, and some of those opinions will be offensive to many. But isn't that a price worth paying to keep the freedom of the internet intact?

It's no coincidence that the countries around the world that try to control internet content most are generally the countries who have the most to hide. Just imagine what stories would come to light if there was freedom of access to the internet in China and Burma, and potentially what atrocities could be prevented through increased exposure on the internet. Does Thailand really want to be lumped together with these guys in terms of personal freedom? It hardly fits with the Amazing Thailand image that they like to sell to the world.

Whilst this particular video, which I haven't seen and knew nothing about until YouTube got banned, sounds fairly pointless and plainly offensive to someone who isn't in a position to retaliate it does raise the question of why. Why did he/she do it? My guess is that it is some kind of reaction to the recent jailing of a Swiss man to 10 years in prison for spraying paint on a picture of the King. As yet the only thing known about the poster is that he/she is registered in the US.

So, what will happen? Will the people of Thailand be denied access to YouTube indefinitely? Will Google, owners of YouTube, agree to drop the video? Personally I think the latter. Despite Google stating clearly that they could see nothing offensive in the video in question I feel sure that within a short period of time YouTube will once again be available in Thailand.

YouTube gone....

Youtube.com banned in Thailand, snorting dead man's ashes and stuff...

As reported in the Bangkok Post today authorities have managed to block access to youtube.com from within Thailand. Having tried to connect to youtube.com today I can confirm that there is nothing but a blank screen.

Apparently no one seems in a hurry to claim responsibility but an anonymous source told the Bangkok Post that CAT (Communications Authority of Thailand) has blocked access to the popular video sharing site.

So, what's the problem? Why do the people of Thailand need to be protected from the evils of youtube.com? It seems that recently there have been some political postings to the site (possibly guilty of telling the truth, which of course is frowned upon here) and last week a video was uploaded that was in some way insulting to the king of Thailand.

Either way my youtube.com viewing days appear to have come to an end for the time being. No more music videos, no more humorous clips from favourite comedians, no more senseless home videos and, more importantly, no more videos from me. Arghhh!!

Almost as disturbing as the lack of youtube in Thailand is a report I just read on the BBC that says Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones has admitted to snorting his father's ashes during a drug binge a few years ago.

"He was cremated and I couldn't resist grinding him up with a little bit of blow."

Shocking but maybe more so if it wasn't Keith saying it. It somehow seems the kind of thing you'd expect from Keith Richards.

The daughter's got friends around here this afternoon so I have even less freedom than usual and certainly less piece. These kids brought with them several huge water guns with water filled backpacks. So needles to say there's an air of dampness around here at the moment. My request not to fire them in the house led to them mooching off into the garden and firing straight through the windows into the house. Lovely kids!

Youtube.com banned in Thailand, snorting dead man's ashes and stuff...

Flights booked and changing names...

The journey back home has turned up a gear, a flight has been booked. So now we have as far as Turkey confirmed, just need to sort out the best route from there. Several options available involving land and sea.

Looking like we might be off to Laos this weekend. Vientiane and Luang Prabang being the main focus. Whilst I'm happy to go I've got so many things to do here I'd rather stay but the wife wants some "quality" time with the daughter and I before we head off. Any recommendations as regards accommodation? Can't help feeling a beach trip would be better at the moment given the heat here.

There's been a suggestion that whilst the current junta are re-writing the constitution they could perhaps look into reverting the name of the country back to Siam. I must say I think that is a great idea. Re-branding is definitely what this place needs at the moment. The old name of Siam (first coined by a Brit) served happily as the country's name for about three or four hundred years until a military dictator (Phibun Songkran, who also declared war on Thailand's allies Britain and the US) renamed the country in 1932.

After he was removed Siam was restored for a few years and then another military ruler changed it back to the old new name of Thailand. Personally I think Siam sounds more mysterious, and gives it that special je ne sais quoi. Anyway, I doubt very much if anything will come of this.

Flights booked and changing names...

Terrible shopping experience - again!

I've done it again. I promised myself last time that any big"gish" purchases would only be from Central World or Paragon, on account of they seem to be the only places where you get a good level of service. Yesterday, due to time constraints, I broke the promise and bought from Central Lad Prao.

It's the wife's birthday today and I bought her a video iPod, and at the same time another video iPod as a replacement for mine that I ran over a few months ago (long story). So yesterday I went into the Apple shop in Central Lad Prao with the intention of buying two video iPods.

After twenty minutes of being ignored by the staff, who refused to serve me and turned their backs whenever I tried to get their attention I lost my rag. I interrupted two members of staff having a good chat and a laugh behind the counter and asked where else in Central I could buy iPods, as no one there seemed interested in serving me. Sarcasm is wasted on Thais, they just don't get it.

When I finally got my point across the one seemed concerned enough to serve me whilst the other one laughed at me. I spoke Thai and asked her why she was laughing and if she had any manners. Sorry, sorry, giggle, giggle.

I agreed to buy the two iPods and said I needed to know how to get all the songs from my existing itunes library onto the new iPod. Sure said she, she'd get someone to explain when I'd paid. I paid and that was that. Get lost. No explanation, nothing. refused to help. I enquired about the manager. Not here today. Could I have a business card? He doesn't have any. Can you give me his telephone number? No, we don't know it. The one girl was still giggling as I left the shop.

I just didn't have enough time to get to town as I had to take the daughter to see Finding Nemo on ice up at Impact Arena so it was a case of desperation. Incidentally that was quite good, well if you're three it was. Oddly it wasn't full, probably about 60% of seats taken. I guess the Thai language shows probably have a bigger crowd.

Terrible shopping experience - again!

Hot with itchy feet...

HOT! Weather just getting hotter all the time. Last week some parts here reached 41c. I feel like I'm sweating all the time unless in air-con areas. I need a beach!

Uneventful weekend so far. All day filming yesterday, daughter to ballet this morning and have to take her to see Disney on Ice this evening - Finding Nemo I think.

Our trip back is almost worked out. It's going to be quite a journey taking in about seven countries, though nothing confirmed yet. Looking forward to this and can't wait for the off, though travelling thousands of miles by plane, train, coach and ferry with a three year old is going to be interesting.

Hot!!!

Hot with itchy feet...

Bangkok hospitals again and too much to do...

A hell of a day yesterday. The daughter's school called me and asked if I could collect her, she was running a high temperature and had no energy. Seems that last week's illness is still with us.
I raced into school and scooped her up from her bed where she was just flaked out and off we went in search of a hospital. I decided to try another hospital as I didn't get a great deal of confidence from the last one, who tried selling us antibiotics even though he'd given her a clean bill of health.

Eventually we got to Phayathai Hospital on Paholyothin Road. Nurses were a bit scatty but the doctor was good. We spent several hours there whilst they ran blood tests. Initially he said she should be tested for dengue fever. After a great deal of screaming the place down blood was taken and off they went to analyse it.

An hour later the results came back. How nice, she was negative for typhoid and various other ailments but they'd forgotten to test for dengue! I kid you not. So, it started again.

Eventually we got the all clear. Seems she has a gastric-virus, probably picked up from other kids or from toys. Anyway, she needs rest and lots of water and she'll be mended in a few days - apparently.

The work is mounting up. The things I need to do before we leave are just not getting done at the moment. Yesterday was lost and today I'm entertaining the daughter as she is not in school which means I have a constant distraction whenever I head to the computer. I need to find storage for the Land Rover, ship personal items back to the UK, say goodbye to everyone, tie-up loose ends and on and on... On top of that the wife wants a holiday before we go so she can spend some time with the daughter and I. Life is starting to feel like one big stressful holiday - GIVE ME WORK!!

Bangkok hospitals again and too much to do...

Daughter not well and hunting for the blind...

Weekend of the daughter being ill. Oh yes, two sleepless nights so far. She's been burning up with a high fever and sneaked into our room on Saturday night just in time to wake us by vomiting all over our bed. Luuuvely! Non-parents will have no idea of the difficulty in remaining calm and supportive at 3am when you've just been awoken by streams of vomit being splurged all over your bed.

Seems on the mend now but kept her out of school today as she had high temperature again this morning. Normally she gets frog marched into school no matter what and has a more or less unblemished attendance record but she really has had it rough all weekend and I don't think school would be any help today.

Managed to resist going to the doctor's so far. I just know that whatever the problem it will be the usual dispensing of antibiotics. She appears very much on the mend at the moment so hopefully all is well. Any continuation and we'll have to see the quack just in case.

Ever heard of Edmund Kuempel? He's a Texas State Representative who has just announced a new bill to give blind people the "right" to hunt using lasers and lights so, and I quote, they can enjoy the fun of hunting too. Basically this translates as everyone must have the right to needlessly kill animals for pleasure. Well cheers Mr. Kuempel, you really are quite something. Maybe they should tether the animals to short chains and that way the "fun" of needless murder is guaranteed. You'd have to be blind to miss. Oh yeah, I forgot. What a world!

Daughter not well and hunting for the blind...

Photo blog Thailand - pt 1

One of the joys of living in Bangkok, and yes there are some, is its photogenic qualities. Take a stroll anytime of day, or night, and you'll almost certainly find something worth photographing. Look beyond the dust and the chaos of the traffic congested streets and there is charm and character just below the surface.

As I'm leaving Thailand very soon I thought I'd post some of the photographs I've collected on my hard drive over the last few years and share them. There tend to be a lot in black and white simply because I prefer black and white. Please feel free to comment, very interested in feedback on this.

Water at night

The big wheel

Pigeons in the park

Street traders

Mobile bank

Concrete

Clutter

Photo blog Thailand - pt 1

Cinema, where is home and McJob, McBlog....

Took the daughter to see Charlotte's Web at Central World yesterday afternoon. Not the best film I've ever seen but the daughter enjoyed it. Good special effects and mildly amusing, and Dakota Fanning in the lead role was a big draw for the daughter (she was also in Cat in the Hat, her favourite film).

Being an animal lover it seemed to appeal to the daughter who seems to now be viewing spiders and pigs in a new light. Last week she announced out of the blue that she wants to be a vet. I know, she's three and will surely make a thousand changes before she needs to start thinking about her career properly, but this comes as no surprise. She's always been affectionate towards animals and has never hurt so much as a fly (excluding mosquitoes as they are just the spawn of Satan and don't count). She wants to go to Africa to see Lions and India to see Tigers (Kipling and his Jungle Book are responsible for this) and has cried on more than one occasion when she has seen an animal get hurt. Personally I think she will end up doing something animal related but only time will tell.

Speaking with a German friend who has two kids here (both parents German) the other day and we were talking about how the kids view Thailand. Both his kids see Thailand as home and Germany as a cool holiday destination. I've noticed that with our daughter she has never made the distinction of either country as home. To her the UK and Thailand are both home. She refers to England as home and Bangkok as home. She always says she's from England but lives in Thailand. When we're here she's home and when we're in England she says she's home. Don't know whether that is a good thing or not. I feel it is good but does it show lack of stability in her life? Hmm

McDonalds are getting annoyed with the Oxford English Dictionary for putting in the word McJob: an unstimulating, low-paid job with few prospects, esp. one created by the expansion of the service sector. They say this is unfair and demeaning to the many people it employs. Not sure what to think of this one, just find the cheek of it quite amusing. Here's one I just thought up, McBlog: an unstimulating, no-pay blog, with little or no prospects, esp. one created by the gargantuan expansion of the blogospere. Wow, that's my blog!!!!

Cinema, where is home and McJob, McBlog....

Thailand's u-turns, more trouble and a crashed Bugatti Veyron....

In its quest to be the hub for everything and anything in this region Thailand appears to have found a new hub to aim for. The hub for u-turns. Anyone who has driven in Bangkok will know how much Thais love a good u-turn, the road system is alive with u-turn lanes and u-turn bridges. But the love affair with the u-turn is not restricted to the roads, oh no. Following such monumental about faces as the great exchange control u-turn which saw the value of the Thai stock market plummet like never before, and the banning alcohol advertising double u-turn we now have the "they bombed me, they bombed me not" u-turn.

After the confusion of the new year bombing extravaganza the government categorically denied the possibility of the southern Muslim extremists being involved. The country's military supremo, and also a Muslim, even pointed out that the insurgents in the south didn't know Bangkok and would get lost if they tried coming here (I jest you not). So it wasn't them, no way, no how, not possible, couldn't be, put it out of your mind, it wasn't them. Or so you might have thought. Now, as most will already have read, the screech of brakes is once again coming through loud as the government bus pulls another tyre-burning u-turn.

It was them!! It was them all along. The government was only teasing after all. The bomb material which wasn't the same was the same in the end. Where the MO was different now it is the same. Well there we go, another fine mess sorted and a classy u-turn that even the Dukes of Hazzard would be proud of.

On a serious note it is quite worrying the amount of people that are being killed here in Thailand at the moment. It seems that daily there is a slaughter of innocent people in the south, on both sides. It has even got to the stage where I find that I skim over the headlines of yet another bus load of innocent people slaughtered because they were of a different faith or whatever the reason and barely give it a thought. It's become so commonplace that I find myself desensitized. Ten bombs gone off, twelve people killed, three schools set alight, children forced to watch their parents beheaded and on and on and barely more than a tut of disapproval. I notice that one again there is almost no mention of these acts in the international media. Don't quite understand that one.

More Thais are protesting about the atrocities on both sides and at the weekend there was the makings of a serious protest, with eight hundred people taking to the streets in an anti-government protest. With the violence in the south, concerns about the military government in Bangkok and the appalling pollution in the north Thailand doesn't appear to be having its finest hour at present. You can't help feel that as the current junta comes under more pressure to restore democracy, give power back to the people and then bugger off they might just return to the bad old ways of the bad old days when innocent protesters were cheerily gunned down in the streets. Lets hope that it never comes to that.

Remember that Bugatt Veyron I mentioned before, here. Fastest production car in the world, costing US$1.5million etc. Well, some guy in the south of England has had his first crash in one. Apparently he is devastated and not taking it too well.

Thailand's u-turns, more trouble and a crashed Bugatti Veyron....

The pain of development...

Many years ago I was having a pint with a friend and his step-father. The step-father was giving a sermon on the ills of the tourist industry and its effects on different parts of the world, whilst reminiscing about a journey he'd made as a young lad through Spain.

The trip was in the fifties at a time when Spain was still very much a country of quaint hamlets and peasant farmers full of hospitality. Comparing it to Spain as it had become by the early nineties he was full of sadness for the "terrible" development that had taken place.

At the time I could understand but it's only recently that I've begun to appreciate fully what he meant. In the early nineties I discovered paradise, well as close as I ever thought I'd get to it anyway; and actually I didn't discover it as that had been done many centuries before.

My paradise was Koh Samet. It was quiet, traffic free, free from pollution and all the noise and vulgarity you normally associate with tourist spots. The beaches were of spotlessly clean white sand and the sea crystal clear, warm and full of life. Accommodation was relaxed, cheap and generally of the bamboo hut variety.

I've just returned from a yet another weekend on Koh Samet. Now when I visit I feel nothing but sadness seeing how it has developed in the last few years at break neck speed. Every beach is developed, piles of rubbish are dotted all over, the sea is alive to the sound of jet skis and speedboats and the beaches infested with discos that churn out deafening music until the wee small hours (really sounding old now).

The best beach was always the one at the southern most tip of the island, I forget its name. Being the most narrow part of the island you could wake up in your beach-side bamboo hut to the sun rising and a five minute stroll in the evening would see you immersed in water watching the same sun disappearing over the horizon. The beach was the best I'd ever seen and with water to match. Whenever I spoke of Koh Samet, and that beach in particular, to others I found myself running short of superlatives, it really was something else. That same beach is now home to a five star resort that charges up to 60,000 baht per night! And they've put a swimming pool on the beach!! I'm equally short of superlatives in my description, but could probably muster a few expletives.It's nothing unusual and the development is actually par for the course and a natural progression. It's just sad when you know what it used to be like. I have some very fond memories of Koh Samet, and had some great times there. For someone going there now for the first time then maybe they see it as their paradise and their ideal beach location.

This trip was OK. We paid more than normal and stayed in one of the better resorts which doesn't have loud music and jet skis and, despite it's luxury, has been developed sympathetically with the surrounding environment. But, whilst lay in bed last night watching satellite TV in air-conditioned comfort, sipping cold beer from the fridge by the side of the bed with the wife reclining on the balcony outside I couldn't help think of when I'd first stayed on this particular beach before, fourteen years ago.

Then the room was made of bamboo, had a small fan just about tethered to the side of the room that offered limited protection from the heat, and electricity was only for part of the evening. Over the mite-infested bed hung a torn mosquito net and beer needed to be drunk quickly before it reached room temperature. I spent a week there with my girlfriend of the time and did nothing but read, swim, work up a sweat in bed, smoke, drink and sleep - and not necessarily in that order. Happy Days!!

The pain of development...

Nearly at the beach, Imax, Bangkok hospitals and other things...

I should be on my way to a sunny beach with the daughter now, but I'm not. She's off school today, teacher's day or something. Yesterday I was called in to collect her from school in the morning due to her complaining of stomach pains.

Normally I wouldn't have bothered but she's complained of pains in the stomach a lot in the last few days so I scooped her out of school and made for the hospital on Chiang Wattana Road. She was examined, against her will, and given a clean bill of health. The doc said there was no evidence of anything being wrong. Wonderful.

But then he said he could prescribe two kinds of pill. For what said I. Because said he. I quizzed him, didn't he just give her a completely clean bill of health? Yes, he said. There's nothing wrong. So why the pills? Just routine. I declined and we left. Absolutely shocking. Nothing at all wrong but still they give you pills and he couldn't even give a reason for the pills he was prescribing! In Thailand the doctor's word is law and must be obeyed. So, had I been Thai I wouldn't have questioned but gone along with his recommendation, wasted money and my daughter would now have been popping pills for no apparent reason.

We're keeping an eye on her and assuming it's indigestion for now. To cheer her up I took her to the Imax at Paragon to see Open Season. Not a bad movie for the kids and impressive in 3D. There were six people in the screening altogether, including us, which made it quite a nice experience. Quite funny watching the daughter reaching towards the screen trying to touch the characters as they appeared to be coming towards her.

I don't like to harp on about shopping malls but I really think that, with the exception of the True shop at Paragon, Central World Plaza beats Paragon hands down. I find Paragon with it's heavily segregated parking based on social status and pretentious clientele just a tad too ostentatious for my liking. I think Central hits the spot just right. Paragon has better bookshops and that wonderful True shop but apart from that I see no positives.

Anyway, back to the beach. As a result our heading off to the beach this morning is on hold for the moment. She's looking fine now so it could be on for this afternoon. All we need to do now is locate a good beach and head forth towards sun, sea and sand.

On a more grisly note I read about the hearing of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed. He's quoted as saying: "I decapitated with my blessed right hand the head of the American Jew, Daniel Pearl, in the city of Karachi, Pakistan." And: "For those who would like to confirm, there are pictures of me on the internet holding his head."

I can't begin to comprehend the hatred involved here, that this guy must obviously be feeling, and the callous attitude towards what was essentially an innocent life. I would dearly love to understand what makes someone like this tick, what his real motivation for such an act is and how he can feel so clearly justified in having committed these acts.

Nearly at the beach, Imax, Bangkok hospitals and other things...

Sticky moments involving race..

The daughter had a friend here yesterday and they both wanted to watch The Chronicles of Narnia, the daughter's current obsession. Fine, I have no problem with that. They got comfy and I started the DVD.

The opening credits and then the film started. The first scene involves shots of London being bombed during WWII and frightened kids being separated from their mother and whisked away to far off parts of the UK for safety. My daughter's friend asked what was happening. Why are they doing that? I started to explain that the German's were blowing up London during WWII when it dawned on me that she is in fact German. Suddenly I felt the need to come up with new words to explain what was happening. Basil Fawlty suddenly came to mind, "Don't mention the war."

I know it's probably not a big deal but I just don't think three year olds need to have war explained to them just yet. A similar situation arose last year when the daughter got the Valiant DVD. Pigeons working tirelessly for the war effort against...the Germans. She kept asking me who the bad guys were and I just couldn't bring myself to tell her they were Germans, two of her closest friends being German of course. Maybe it wouldn't register but it seemed better to leave the race of the bad guys out of the picture and wait until she's older.

Race to date has never been a problem. She's in a multi-cultural environment, from a mixed marriage and neither parent is in any way discriminatory. However, there are only two black kids at the school, both black-American and both boys. She's never even mentioned any difference and is good friends with one of them, the other is older and in a different group. At school the kids are all just kids.

But when we were in Singapore airport earlier in the year she was bouncing around the play area when a Sri Lankan family came in with a daughter, who was clearly the darkest person my daughter has ever seen. My daughter looked a bit shocked and then smiled to me, "Daddy, look at the chocolate girl." My jaw hit the floor. The mother smiled and I apologised. But what do you say? She didn't mean any offence and actually played with her for a while until it was time to go. I couldn't tell her off because she didn't know that anything was amiss. I also didn't really want to draw her attention to it too much. I quietly took her aside and tried to explain that it was not polite to say things like that and that the girl might have been upset.

It's the one and only time that she's ever made any reference to people being different and I think it just came out without any thought process. Certainly embarrassing for me at the time. Don't you just love kids?

Sticky moments involving race..

Security in Bangkok, somewhere for the weekend and photos....

Visited Paragon shopping mall yesterday and discovered that in the name of security all shoppers have to be scanned and have their bags searched. Seems OK, no problem with that. However, I went through with my camera backpack thingy from Lowepro which has a lower section for cameras etc. In mine I had a movie cam and a digital SLR and various things like batteries and remotes and whatnot. The guards searched the upper empty areas and didn't bother to question why such an empty bag was heavy. I could easily have been concealing a bomb or something more sinister in there and they would have been none the wiser. Did make me wonder if it is a serious measure or just a confidence building PR gesture.

Looking for somewhere to go this weekend, other than making our regular pilgrimage to Koh Samet. I spoke to someone recently (Thai) who said there is a huge problem on Samet at the moment with flies. Rubbish is continuing to pile up in the hedges and forested areas and no one is bothering to move it. Result is an abundance of flies and increase in food related illness. Good to see the authorities making good use of the extra income from doubling the entrance fee to the island.

Here are some views of Bangkok, for no particular reason.

Security in Bangkok, somewhere for the weekend and photos....

New blog for a good cause and full moon party on Koh Phangan...

Found a new blog here in Thailand, worth a look and a very worthy cause. Ally is a retired English woman who has made Chiang Mai her home and devotes her time to caring for street dogs. As volunteers Ally and helpers work to improve the welfare for dogs on the streets in Chiang Mai, Thailand. There motto is: "Saving one dog won't change the world, but surely the world will change for that one dog" I've added this blog to my "Daily Read".

Many people have sent me emails asking about the famous full moon parties on Koh Phangan. I've never actually been but it's not possible to live here and not know anything about them. As far as I know the schedule for the coming months is as follows.

Full moon party, Koh Phangan:

April 2nd - May 1st - June 1st - June 29th - July 31st - August 28th - September 26th - October 26th - November 24th - December 24th.

That's the rest of the full moon parties on Koh Phangan for this year, as I understand it. Probably worth checking when you arrive too.

There are several ways to get there which involve bus, train, boat and plane, or a mix of all. Air Asia flies to Surat Thani and Bangkok Air flies to Samui. Boat/bus transfers are available from both locations. Trains run regularly from Bangkok to Surat Thani and there are coach companies that offer coach/boat package. Try any of the agents on Khao San Road.

New blog for a good cause and full moon party on Koh Phangan...

Growing concern about the impending move and beach scene, Koh Tao..

Both pics Khao Tao, Songkran 2006

With the end date drawing closer there's an increasing amount to do. Moving country is quite a big thing. It's amazing how you manage to accumulate crap over the years. I try to keep things minimalist but the wife is one of those who just seems to live for acquiring pointless objects. If there's an empty space in the house then she has to buy some object or item to fill it. Result: we've got a lot of junk to clear out.

On the subject of moving, I had an email from a friend in the UK today reminding me that the house prices are still rocketing out of control at a rate of 10%. He was wondering where we're going to live. Having not worked for nearly three years now getting re-started is going to be very difficult.

I think food, clothes, cars and most electrical items are cheaper in the UK than Thailand but where it is definitely more expensive is the other costs: property purchase, utility bills, council tax, school fees, fuel, tax (the shed load of "stealth" taxes that Labour have sneaked in through the back door), and transport (rail etc).

We still have a house there but there but we rent it out and whilst someone is in there and paying it seems sensible to leave them there for the moment. It will definitely be a struggle to buy another one but if we can then hopefully it will be worth it, certainly in the long term. We Brits do have an obsession with property and property ownership. Europeans seem to be more content with renting and don't seem to attach such importance to property ownership as us Brits. Maybe they have a point, maybe struggling all through your life to achieve land and property ownership is, in the end, pointless.

I guess that despite the enormous uphill struggle we have to face in the coming months, and probably years, and combined with protestations from an angry mother-in-law, it should all be worth it. Time will tell.

Growing concern about the impending move and beach scene, Koh Tao..

Japanese restaurant and inter-racial family turbulence...

Discovered a great little Japanese restaurant last night. Just across Sukhumvit Road from Emporium tucked away inside a soi, same soi as The Bull's Head I think. It's called something like Tan Tan Men.

Nothing special to look at, very basic in fact but the food is excellent. Had a veggie Wakame Ramen for 150baht a bowl which was delicious. Generally I need two bowls of noodles to feel that I've eaten but the portions here were generous to say the least. Clientele seems predominantly Japanese and the atmosphere quiet. Definitely going there again.

The wife broke the news to the in-laws over the weekend that we're off soon. The wife's father and sister were understanding and took it well, general feeling of "your life, do what you think is best", which I really appreciate. The mother, however, did not take it well. To say she is not happy about it is would be a huge understatement.

I am officially enemy number 1. I am the worst kind of rat there is and my wife is been selfish, apparently. We had expected some resistance but not the weekend long barrage of abuse we've received. The mother's idea is that I should leave and take my daughter with me and the wife should stay here, and we see each other once a year. Completely f###### deranged!! (Sorry about the language there but often a well placed expletive can convey the feeling better than a string of flowery adjectives).

This is beyond culture and even disparities in generational thinking, this is just about a selfish old woman who can't understand that people have their own lives to lead the best way they can. She even had the audacity to tell the wife that I don't love her and that she should not love me, and certainly not more than she loves her family or herself. She has now refused to see me or our daughter. Whilst I'm tempted to cheer at this last one I think it is very sad for the daughter, the innocent one in all this who is now going to be ostracized because of her blood.

On a happier note, the sun is shining and I'm off to the gym. With all this bad feeling about is a calming picture I took last year in the UK.

One of the peaks in Snowdonia, near the Cantilever. I might not have been a big fan of living in Wales but the countryside is beautiful - stunning. In Snowdonia you can always find somewhere to be alone.

Japanese restaurant and inter-racial family turbulence...

Muay Thai boxing (kicking boxing) near Khao San Road and weight loss..

Interesting day. Spent the whole afternoon down Khao San Road way filming Thai boxers at Sor. Vorapin Gym with John from khaosanroad.com।

Having been in the ring with a couple of Muay-Thai (Thai boxing or kick-boxing) boxers and a regular boxing world champion I can safely say I now have a new found respect for these guys। It looks so easy on the TV but when you're in the ring with them, literally inches from them hammering the hell out of each other you get the full effect।

I was sweating buckets just watching but these guys seemed to be handling the heat pretty well। I'm inspired, i might go and give it a go. Certainly looks like the way to get fit - and lose some aggression at the same time.

The video and interview will be up on khaosanroad.com soon(ish) and I'll drop a version here too.

Talking of exercise, I mentioned about four weeks ago after returning from the UK that I'd managed to add on about 7kg whilst over there। I vowed to get it off and I have. Yep, 7kg now eradicated and I'm back to my previous weight. All gone through a mixture of controlling my diet and daily exercise. My aim now is to shed another 5kg and continue getting fit.

Muay Thai boxing (kicking boxing) near Khao San Road and weight loss..